11/9/2024

IGCSE GLOBAL PERSPECTIVES

Key Terms and Exam Tips

ISSUE CAUSE COSEQUENCE

An issue is a topic or Cause: something Consequence: an effect

problem that can be which produces a which follows logically
debated or discussed. result; a person or thing from a cause;
which is responsible for something which
a situation, action or happens because of
event. another situation,
action or event.

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• Pieces of information that are true and are

Fact verifiable by observation and prior knowledge to
prove their truth.
TYPES OF INFORMATON

• Beliefs, views or judgements. It is not verifiable

Opinion by observation but can be agreed/disagreed
with.

• Attempt to foresee or say what will happen in

Predictions the future. It is not verifiable by observation until
the event occurs.

Value • Particular kinds of opinions which attempt to

Judgements differentiate good from bad or right from wrong.

Personal • This is a perspective that an individual has about an issue. It is

influenced by local and national perspectives, but also by the
perspectives: reflective thinking that each individual does.
TYPES OF PERSPECTIVES

Local • This can be related to a small part of a country, especially when

there are differences within a country. Local perspectives can also

perspectives
relate to a region which is much bigger than a country and which can
share a common perspective on some issues.

National • These are related to a particular country as a whole, like

Issues relating to government policy

perspectives What is best for the country

The way in which the people of that country see things.

Global • These are related to the world as a whole.

perspectives
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Reasons for doing a specific action

Justify your choice using the following reasons:

• possible positive/negative consequences or effects on

individuals/groups/countries/globally
• degree of impact on quality of life
• degree of impact on human rights
• how many people/groups/countries are
affected/benefit
• increasing cycle of benefit
• how widespread the benefit is
• how easy to help people/improve quality of life
• effects on society generally
• other reasonable response

Evaluating An Issue

the benefits for

the human rights issues
individuals, countries
consequences/impact affect everyone
and the world

issues of value and morality – issues of

vulnerable
beliefs about rights right and wrong from
individuals/groups
and responsibilities different cultures

other reasonable
responses

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Strength and Weakness

Consider the strengths and weaknesses of arguments / opinions.

Strengths and weaknesses of arguments

STRENGTHS WEAKNESSES

 factual evidence  research evidence is partially cited – the

 whether several different types of fact source and authorship are not clear
are used  level of expertise of the author is not clear
 is the factual evidence is generally – may have poor knowledge claims
relevant?  method of research is alleged/unclear
 is the evidence is related clearly and  there is only a little clear, specific
explicitly to the argument? statistical/numerical evidence
 is the evidence used forcefully in a  the evidence is not easy to verify/check
strongly worded argument? from the information provided
 is research evidence cited?  too much reliance on opinion and personal
 is personal experience used? anecdote
 other reasonable response  evidence may be out of date
 personal testimony/anecdote/values may
not apply to other places/countries etc.
 other reasonable responses

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Testing Claims
consider the types of information, sources of evidence or
methods you might use.

WHAT?
HOW?
Possible Types of Information
 compare statistics/information for Possible Methods
individuals, countries and globally  review of secondary
 interview or questionnaire data sources/literature/research/documents
 expert testimony  interviews
 material from international NGOs  interview relevant experts
and pressure groups  internet search
 other relevant response  questionnaires
 surveys
WHERE?  other relevant response

Possible Sources of Information

 national and local governments and their
departments
 international organisations e.g. United
Nations; UNESCO
 research reports
 pressure groups, charities and non
government organisations
 media and worldwide web
 other relevant response

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Questioning Knowledge Claims

Evaluating reasoning in source materials.

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While evaluating reasoning in source materials, consider:

 quality of the argument  knowledge claims

 clarity  ability to see
 tone – emotive; exaggerated; precise  sources of bias
 language  gender
 balance  political
 quality of the evidence  personal values
 relevance  experience
 sufficiency – sample  likelihood of solutions working and
 source – media; radio consequences of their ideas
 date – how recent  acceptability of their values to others
 factual, opinion, value, anecdote  how likely other people are to agree with their
 testimony – from experience and expert perspective/view

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Assessing courses of action

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While assessing the course of action, consider the following :

reference to scale of
impact on the effects of cultural
how long it takes to
individual/group/ differences and
make a difference
governmental beliefs
behaviour/actions

the power of
barriers to change
collective action

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